


Hardbody

by Brushtale



Category: Alita: Battle Angel (2019), NCT (Band)
Genre: Androids, Fluff, Gen, Jaehyun Is a Good Big Bro, Taeyong is cute, Yuta is Concerned but shhh it'll be fine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-10-05 20:57:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20495228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brushtale/pseuds/Brushtale
Summary: NCT in an Alita: Battle Angel AU. Expands on the little "systems check" scene that Alita and Ido share, right after Alita wakes up and comes downstairs. Very minimal spoilers for Battle Angel, since this is only the first ten minutes or so of the film."I need to ensure the nerves from your core are still active, alright?"The boy gave a simple nod of consent, unflinching when Jaehyun's hands came to cup his cheeks - soft, sensitive, and human. Eyes closed blissfully and a smile once more played at the corners of his mouth as he leaned into the touch. Jaehyun felt another laugh of success bubble up in his chest, but was still too stunned to express it yet. As he traced his thumbs back and forth, he murmured, "Incredible..."





	Hardbody

"Any numbness?"

"No."

"Motor skills working alright?"

Jaehyun marveled at the cold hands flexing in his, joints sliding soundlessly, pale fingertips clicking against each other as they gave an experimental wriggle. The motion was seamlessly lifelike, beautifully curious, and wonderfully..._wonderfully_ smooth.

"No hitches," Jaehyun noted with a breath, taking the hands and turning them over, looking over the palms now once they'd stilled from their curious flexing, "I bet you could play piano if you really wanted."

"Piano?" the dulcet voice trilled happily, "You think?"

Jaehyun finally looked up to the hands' owner with a nod, forcing a smile on his face. The boy appeared for all the world his age. By design, he was worlds older. By heart, he was only a child. A breathy half-smile rested easily on his plush lips, but his true excitement was plain in his eyes...Those _eyes_, so doe-ish and warm, just _slightly_ too large to be human, yet so subtle that you wouldn't see the difference if you didn't look twice. But Jaehyun was doing more than looking twice. He was staring.

The boy's smile grew a little wider, and with a teasing crease of his eyes, he laughed, "What?"

"Nothing," Jaehyun felt himself laugh back, "I'm sorry, I got distracted. Let's finish the tests, okay?"

"Okay," the boy sat back straight in his seat, waggling his shoulders as he checked his posture. Both cold hands were given again and Jaehyun held them up. With his thumb, he pushed each finger on each hand back one at a time, eyeing pistons and wheels flex and turn through the gaps in the casing on his palms. Each moved with perfection and reacted with the proper amount of resistance.

"Is that too far?" he asked quietly. His patient gave a calm head-shake, sending a few sweeps of cat-black hair into his eyes. Jaehyun felt both hands twitch with the desire to reach up and brush it away. Allowing it, he released one.

"Hands are working a hundred percent," he breathed. There should have been _some_ hitches, _some_ compatibility issues when connecting everything together. But no... The boy he found in the trash heap seemed to have adapted to the body Jaehyun made in an instant, as if two halves of a whole had finally met. Gently tracing upward, he gave the boy's wrists a squeeze. The cool ivory casing, nor the mechanics underneath had any softness to it, not like human skin. But all the same, when he continued the test up the boy's arms, it was plain that these touches were felt.

"I need to ensure the nerves from your core are still active, alright?"

The boy gave a simple nod of consent, unflinching when Jaehyun's hands came to cup his cheeks - soft, sensitive, and human. Eyes closed blissfully and a smile once more played at the corners of his mouth as he leaned into the touch. Jaehyun felt another laugh of success bubble up in his chest, but was still too stunned to express it yet. As he traced his thumbs back and forth, he murmured, "Incredible..."

The boy opened one doe eye.

"_You're_ the one who built all this," he reminded with a playful note. At that, Jaehyun finally did let out a chuckle, moving to ruffle the boy's head.

"Not this part..." he hushed, "All I did was replace what a very resilient little android had been missing..."

"Still missing one thing," came a comment from behind the duo. Looking up from the nerve test, Jaehyun saw Yuta standing in the doorway, a gentle smile on his face, and a clipboard in his one human hand. His mechanical hand tapped a pencil to it quietly.

"The boy still needs a name," Yuta reminded.

Jaehyun hadn't forgotten, he simply didn't know how to say what he'd been calling this android since they'd brought in his core from the scrapyard. And yet...when that inquisitive, doe-ish gaze fell on him, waiting, Jaehyun felt the word simply...leave him.

"Taeyong," he whispered, then, "It's a good name."

Taeyong's eyes lit up, then a smile like the sunrise followed. But Jaehyun hadn't expected the hug.

"I _love it_," Taeyong swore, wrapping his arms righter around Jaehyun - the man who had woke him from a sleep too long, and given him a new life on the other side. It was a fight against tears for the doctor, and as he patted the boy's back, he was glad those tears were not seen by anyone more than Yuta.

"Come on," Jaehyun said suddenly, blinking back emotion and breaking the embrace, "Let's get you outside. Gotta see where you're living now."

"Okay," Taeyong beamed. Curiosity was already sparking at the forefront of his gaze, and he was on his feet before Jaehyun could offer a hand. Ivory feet touched the floor, pale stone fingertips pushing off the metal table where he'd been reborn, carbon and steel sliding underneath in sweet silence and perfect form. After getting dressed, Taeyong looked human. All but his limbs and hands, and barely his eyes. And those...those, people would learn to look past, when they saw how human he truly was.

"Ready?" Jaehyun questioned. The nod he was given was nothing less than energetic. Turning briefly to Yuta, he called, "We should only be a few minutes. Just long enough for Taeyong to see the city. Watch the shop a moment."

"Sure," Yuta beamed, but how strained that smile was... Jaehyun tried to convey back with a single stare that things would be okay. When he offered his hand to Taeyong, he felt a smooth palm slip into his.

"Come on little angel," he ushered, "Let's give you a good welcome back to the world..."


End file.
